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June 12 (UPI) -- A new test is capable of confirming COVID-19 using urine, blood, saliva or mouth-swab samples in 30 to 45 minutes, according to a study published Friday by the journal PLOS ONE. The new platform relies on reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification, or RT-LAMP, technology, which has been used in the diagnosis of infectious diseases for years, the authors said.
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It's also relatively inexpensive -- both in terms of price and costs associated with use -- they said.
"We need more testing options if we are going to be able to stage a successful public health response to coronavirus," study co-author Laura Lamb, a research scientist at Beaumont Hospital in Michigan, told UPI.
"This is a rapid test that does not require expensive machinery to run and the materials for it are relatively inexpensive," Lamb said. "The more options we have for testing, the better."
Currently, the most accurate test for the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, is RT-PCR. However, it can take a day or more on most RT-PCR platforms to obtain results, and the technology may be too expensive for some hospitals and clinics.
Dozens of COVID-19 testing platforms have received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval, but accuracy varies.
RT-LAMP is a "one-step" technology, according to Lamb and her colleagues. The reagents used in the test are inexpensive and can be stored at room temperature, and it works with a range of sample types, they said.
It is also highly accurate and fast for other infectious diseases, they said.
In addition, because it's an existing test, it could be ready for widespread use within a month or so, provided manufacturers would be willing to increase production, Lamb told UPI.
Lamb and her colleagues developed an RT-LAMP diagnostic test for SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, and measured its efficacy using blood, urine, saliva and mouth swab samples spiked with different amounts SARS-CoV-2 genetic material. The test was also used on clinical samples from COVID-19 patients.
The RT-LAMP test successfully detected SARS-CoV-2 in all human samples within 30 to 45 minutes, with an estimated limit of detection of as few as 304 viral copies in a sample, the researchers said.
In addition, the test did not detect virus in samples spiked with RNA from other coronaviruses, which suggests "specificity" for SARS-CoV-2, they said.
RT-LAMP was positive for 19 of 20 of mouth swab samples from COVID-19 patients deemed positive by RT-PCR and negative for 18 or 20 ruled negative by RT-PCR, according to the researchers. The discrepancies between methods could represent either false positives by the RT-LAMP, contamination or increased sensitivity of RT-LAMP compared to RT-PCR, they said.
"This [test] could be used for screening wherever the risk may be -- nursing homes, cruise ships, naval ships or even at local pharmacies and stores," Lamb said. "We are optimistic that with the right resources, this could be ready for widespread use within a month or so."
